HIGH ROW: Darlington'S High Row can yet be saved from destruction by the vandals on the borough council. Officers have not listened to the expressed views of the public and are seeking to wipe away over 100 years of history at a stroke.

As George Flynn says in his book, Darlington - A Second Selection, "vigilance is still necessary to prevent the needless destruction of our heritage".

The designers, Gillespies, say that their design reflects something of what High Row was like before 1901 - but High Row before 1901 was a sloping cobbled area from the pavement of High Row down to the Great North Road.

I have complained to the council and will be complaining to the Local Ombudsman, but the council count complaints as "nothing" and is still proceeding with its plans, hoping to present the Ombudsman with a fait accompli.

The council has given me no proof that it has a legal title sufficient to enable it to carry the works but then, of course, the council is convinced that it can do whatever it likes. - John W Antill, Darlington.

ARMED POLICE: I DO not blame the Metropolitan Police for the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes last week in Stockwell tube station.

The officers shouted at him a number of times to stop running, but he continued to fastfoot it away. Mr de Menezes could have easily had explosives wrapped around his waist as he tried to board the train, but the armed police officers were not to know this.

We are currently living in dangerous times, and I would like to see all British bobbies carrying guns on our streets, to protect civilians and, indeed, themselves. - Christopher Wardell, Darlington.

MADE UP: I HAVE just seen a report issued by the Government that Tony Blair has spent £1,800 in the past six years on make-up for his public appearances.

This amount was further added to during the Iraq crisis when he added almost another £800 between 2003-4 for TV appearances, to tell us about the weapons of mass destruction.

Alas, this is not a single case, as many leading politicians have also admitted to spending similar amounts or more on their public appearance. Irish premier Bertie Ahern has been reported to have spent £115,000 since 1997.

According to a survey, the average British woman spends around £190-£210 per year on make-up. Does this mean that, at approximately £430 per year, Mr Blair's make-up is twice as good?

Maybe he uses twice as much, which would be a strong indication of proof that politicians, in general, are twofaced in any case. - Name and address supplied.

ANIMAL WATCH: IT IS sickening that the RSPCA report reveals that animal cruelty is on the increase; it is also worrying that our region was highlighted as being the worst in the country, with evidence of some harrowing examples of dreadful cruelty (Echo, July 20).

But while our track record is appalling, with a reported 35,280 complaints made last year, thankfully the figures also show that people in the region are blowing the whistle on the perpetrators of this type of abuse.

Campaigns such as Animal Watch, launched by The Northern Echo, can take some credit for this.

We would have no way of knowing how much unreported cruelty might still be going on if people did not speak out, so the figures at least tell us that people in our region are being vigilant and doing their bit to stop this disgraceful situation.

The next step is for the authorities to act on the RSPCA recommendations and make sure those responsible for cruelty are prosecuted.

Any form of abuse is unacceptable and one way of getting the message across is to make sure those who mete out cruelty are forced to face the consequences. - Marie Gressmann, Esh Winning.

EDUCATION: WE do not have a child, yet. We are, however, planning to start a family in 2007 and we can be certain that Junior will have nothing but the best in education.

With the help of Education Secretary Ruth Kelly, a free bag of books will be delivered when Junior is only eight months old.

Wonderful. He should be a stolid member of the local library by the time he is one year old, have finished the complete works of Shakespeare by the time he is three and be conversant with War and Peace when he enters school. In his spare time he will also have gained an MA in art with his free box of crayons.

He'll finish school at the age of 14 having already been registered to receive a dozen or so GCSEs - grade A, of course.

Oops, sorry. Reality slipped a little back there.

Common sense should tell anyone that any child under three has important things to learn, such as talking and walking.

Of course education levels have dropped. In my work I meet a wide cross-section of the population who have "accidentally left their glasses at home" when it comes to reading and signing documents.

I see, almost daily, pupils from the local comp picking up a few pence worth of sweets and crisps in the local newsagents, proffering a handful of change and asking the assistant if they have enough money.

Please think about the waste Ms Kelly. These 14-year-old pupils are going to be parents themselves in another couple of years. How are they going to help their children if they haven't grasped basic communication skills?

Why not put the estimated £27m of taxpayers' money into more useful projects? A good starting point would be to fund a research programme to discover why politicians come up with such crackpot ideas to justify their ministerial positions. - Name and address supplied.

THE MONARCHY: IT is not difficult to find holes in the letter written by monarchy worshipper Anita Atkinson (HAS, July 22).

The Royal Family's private problems, marital breakdowns and outrageous antics are the absolute laughing stock of the civilised world. In truth, the British people themselves are deeply concerned about the prospect of King Charles and Queen Camilla. Just ask the poor secretaries who have to answer the hundreds of "fan" mail the Royals receive each week.

It is common knowledge that the monarchy is in a mess and has been now for a good 100 years - in fact ever since the days of Queen Victoria, whose unpopularity led to the foundation of more than 70 republican groups. Not surprisingly, modern opinion polls and phone-in polls are showing increasing uncertainty about the future of the monarchy, with 49 per cent of Scots in favour of an elected head of state.

The fact of the matter is, the monarchy has not been able to maintain its mystique and its air of mystery.

Prince Charles and Co are the architects of their own downfall in that, for all their expensive education, they can still appear awkward in their job and almost totally characterless. In my opinion, they are not worthy of respect. - Aled Jones, Bridlington.